Say Goodbye (Romantic Suspense #25) by Karen Rose

            “The day he was released. Dammit, I should have seen this before.”

            But he’d been distracted the day he’d fixed these photos to his board. By the woman who was now scrutinizing each and every document and photo he’d collected.

            “What else did Waylon’s brother tell you?”

            “That Pastor’s wife, Margo Holly, a.k.a. Marcia Travis, kept to herself, but the elder Belmonts—DJ’s grandparents—kind of adopted her kids. Holidays, school events.” He shook his head at his own thickness. “Because they were Bo and Bernie’s grandparents, too. By blood.”

            “So . . .” Liza said slowly, “Waylon and Marcia marry and, I’m assuming, get divorced because she married Pastor six months later?” She’d found the copy of Marcia and Benton Travis’s marriage license on his bulletin board. “Then what? They changed their names, cooked up fake backgrounds, and applied to work at a church in L.A.? And nobody checked up on their résumés?”

            “Back then it was easier to fake an identity and a résumé,” Tom said. “And I think that many congregations have a basic trust that whoever joins them in worship is one of them. Embezzlement from churches happens all the time still, and the churches are more likely to forgive the crime than a corporation would be. I can get you the statistics if you’re interested.”

            “No, I believe you. That’s doubly sad, you know? Assholes who steal from churches don’t just steal money. They steal trust, too.”

            “Yes,” Tom said simply. “I don’t know how many of these cases are even reported—then and now. Religious organizations—whatever the denomination—are either more willing to forgive because it’s ingrained in their beliefs or they’re embarrassed to have been cheated.”

            “I imagine it’s a little bit of both,” she said thoughtfully. “I wonder if Pastor knew. That the kids weren’t his, I mean.”

            “Good question. None of this helps us find Eden, but I’m kind of invested in the story now. Once we do find Eden, and Pastor and DJ are in custody, I’d like to find Marcia and ask her.”

            Liza leaned into him and he tightened his hold. “Do you know where she is?”

            “Not exactly. I know where she went after she left Benicia, after her daughter graduated from college and her son killed himself. I know the daughter’s name was Tracy and she got married and moved away. Merle’s mother still gets postcards, but with no return address.”

            “Bernice is still hiding,” Liza said sadly. “What about Margo or Marcia or Pastor’s wife, whatever you call her?”

            “She married an architect in Modesto, which was when she moved out of the house in Benicia. I can’t find any architects in Modesto with a wife named Margo. Once it’s safe, maybe you should do your Facebook magic and track her down.”

            “Don’t make fun,” she warned.

            “I’m not,” he promised. “I’m totally not. I’m serious.”

            “Then maybe I will.” She turned to look up at him. “How did you know Pastor was at Sunnyside Oaks?”

            “I was able to get into Eden’s bank account by tracing transfers made to Ephraim’s account. I set an alert for activity and it let me know that money had been transferred to Sunnyside Oaks.”

            “Who did the transfer?”

            “I assume Pastor did.”

            “Not DJ?”

            Tom frowned. “I don’t have any proof one way or the other, but it seems that if DJ had access to the money, he’d have taken his share a long time ago.”

            “Pastor’s holding on to the purse strings,” she murmured. “Not a shock. He must do Internet transfers, since they have a computer.”

            “I figured as much. I haven’t been able to trace the location of whoever’s moving money around, though. We could subpoena the bank’s records, but it’s offshore and that would take a long time.”

            “And Pastor and DJ might find out and move Eden again. Plus, that young woman needs help now. The one who’s pregnant.”